Princeton psychic again hit with theft charges

Christine Evans, also known as Yanna, accused of stealing over $100,000 from Pennsylvania woman.

By: Jennifer Potash
   Christine Evans, also known as Yanna, a purported psychic with a business on Nassau Street, is facing charges in Bucks County, Pa., for allegedly stealing over $100,000 from a Pennsylvania woman.
   Ms. Evans, 35, appeared in Bucks County District Court last month to face charges of theft by deception, fortune telling and tampering with evidence.
   Ms. Evans collected more than $100,000 from a 58-year-old Buckingham, Pa., resident during office, phone and home consultations last year, according to police. She was charged in October.
   Unlike New Jersey, it is against the law in Pennsylvania to charge money to predict the future.
   If convicted on all charges, Ms. Evans faces a maximum of seven years in prison.
   Ms. Evans’ business sign could often be seen on the sidewalk along Nassau Street, next to her business.
   On her Web site, Ms. Evans claims to be "a world-renowned psychic reader and advisor with 20 years’ experience." She seeks to use her "wonderful gift" to help people and "my greatest pleasure is working with people and advising them."
   Her fees start at $25, according to the Web site. She is available for private parties and, for her clients’ convenience, she sells gift certificates and accepts major credit cards.
   In 2002, Ms. Evans was charged with theft by deception after a Plainsboro woman claimed she had taken $183,000 in cash and jewelry.
   The charges were dropped after Ms. Evans and the victim, who suffers from a mental illness, reached a private settlement, said Casey DeBlasio, spokeswoman for the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office.
   In the past, Ms. Evans had pleaded guilty to credit card theft in Mercer County Superior Court, according to the prosecutor’s office.
   She was convicted of theft in Arizona and discontinuing her psychic practice in that state was a condition of her probation, according to the Princeton Borough Police Department.
   Ms. Evans also had a 1994 theft conviction in California, according to the prosecutor’s office.